Pass the Pasta!! Here are three great kitchen tools that will take the work and guesswork out of pasta-making -- and serve-up some nice profits at shows and craft fairs, too !

Cooling Racks

Few projects are easier to make than these Cooling/Drying Racks. Just two strips of wood, joined together by a series of dowels. Start with pieces of 3/4-inch thick stock, 8-inches or 16-inches long and ripped to 2-3/8-inches wide (this will make four 1/2-inch thick sides).

Set up your drill press with a 3/8-inch brad point bit. Lay a 2-inch to 3-inch wide piece of scrap stock on your drill press table surface, up against your rip fence. Attach a piece of masking tape to the face of your rip fence where it meets your scrap stock. Using a pencil, draw index marks on the tape that you’ll use to position your stock for making each of the 16 (or 8) dowel holes.

Be sure your table and drill bit are perpendicular. Set your workpiece on edge and adjust your quill stop so it drills all the way through the 2-3/8-inch width of the stock and barely into your scrap stock. Drill all the holes as shown by the Assembly Drawing.

Once you’ve drilled all your holes, use your table saw (with appropriate push sticks, etc.) to slice off the 1/2-inch thick sides you’ll be needing. Then, run them over the jointer to smooth the faces and sand all the edges smooth before gluing the dowels into position with a waterproof glue. Once the glue has dried, sand the dowels off flush. Few projects are easier to make than these Cooling/Drying Racks. Just two strips of wood, joined together by a series of dowels. Start with pieces of 3/4-inch thick stock, 8-inches or 16-inches long and ripped to 2-3/8-inches wide (this will make four 1/2-inch thick sides).

Set up your drill press with a 3/8-inch brad point bit. Lay a 2-inch to 3-inch wide piece of scrap stock on your drill press table surface, up against your rip fence. Attach a piece of masking tape to the face of your rip fence where it meets your scrap stock. Using a pencil, draw index marks on the tape that you’ll use to position your stock for making each of the 16 (or 8) dowel holes.

Be sure your table and drill bit are perpendicular. Set your workpiece on edge and adjust your quill stop so it drills all the way through the 2-3/8-inch width of the stock and barely into your scrap stock. Drill all the holes as shown by the Assembly Drawing.

Once you’ve drilled all your holes, use your table saw (with appropriate push sticks, etc.) to slice off the 1/2-inch thick sides you’ll be needing. Then, run them over the jointer to smooth the faces and sand all the edges smooth before gluing the dowels into position with a waterproof glue. Once the glue has dried, sand the dowels off flush.

Finishing: We recommend that you use a non-toxic Salad Bowl Finish or other non-toxic finish of your choice for this project.

Pricing: When made out of domestic hardwoods such as cherry, oak or maple, the measure and fork should bring between $15 and $20 as a pair and the cooling rack $15 to $20 by itself! Make them out of more exotic woods and they’ll bring even more. In fact, why not offer a variety?